#TerryTalks: Top Spot World Championships Day 3 Standouts

The Top Spot World Championships had a lot of talented players on the court on day three, and here are a few that stood out to me… 

Curtis Colbert, Jr. (5’1/CG/’29/Clarksville Crossovers) 

Instagram: D1k.cj

Curtis is a small guard that plays with a lot of energy. He was very active on the offensive end with his aggressiveness off the bounce. He is a very shifty guard that can score it off the bounce. He was a major problem attacking the rim the first two days and continued his assertiveness on day three. Early on, Curtis provided the same results until he began to settle for the outside shot. He still has a lot of work to do in that area but make no mistake about it; he is a terror hunting the paint and was a difficult cover in iso situations.  

Nash McAfee (5’0/PG/’29/Hoops Elite) 

Instagram: Nashmcafee_4

Nash is a small floor general that is extremely gritty and scrappy. He is very heady and is developing into the term coach on the floor. He handles the ball majority of the time and does a good job limiting his turnovers. He has good court vision, plays at a good pace, and was the best post-entry passer I saw the entire weekend, regardless of division. Feeding the post is not a valued asset as much as it was in the past, as we do not have many players that set up shop on the low block, but it is refreshing to see a player fake a pass to make a pass into the post. Even though he is small in size, his upsize at the PG position is high.      

Miles Simpson (6’2/CG/’28/NYBA ’28) 

Instagram: Miles_swagball

I was really excited to see Miles when I sat down to watch NYBA warm-up, as the last time I saw him play was at their camp. I got excited to watch him in organized game action. He dominated in camp, and he showed similar signs of domination throughout the weekend. He is a lengthy guard that scores inside and out. He comfortably created space to shoot over smaller wing defenders and scored over the top of post players throughout the weekend. He is on a squad where there may be games when he is the primary scoring option and other games when he can even facilitate the offense. He is highly versatile and showed that he can score at all levels, play out of both the high and low posts, impact the glass, and defend multiple positions. He showed a lot of promise, which comes from being a bonafide scorer and a big-time finisher throughout the weekend, especially on day three. 

Montavious Clardy (5’5/PG/’27/Clarksville Crossovers) 

Instagram: ima.tay3

Twitter: @Tay8794

Montavious followed up the first two days with a monster day on day three. He spent most of the weekend showing his skills at the lead guard spot operating as an orchestrator, but on day three, with his team struggling to find points, he switched to scoring mode. In what turned into an isolation offense, he was very efficient and consistent, scoring off the bounce. He has a quick burst off the bounce which was seen earlier in the tourney, and instead of creating for others, he showed his ability to create his own shot. It was as though Montavious made a decision that he was going to be the best player on the floor and was going to do everything he could to get his team the win. On championship Sunday, he was a high-level scorer that got it done at all levels.      

Tashaun Quarles (6’1/C/’27/UpNext ’27) 

It was the Tashaun show for 90% of the game for his squad. He was very active on both ends of the floor, but he made his mark with his ability to knock down the mid-range J. Defensively, he showed an overwhelming ability to protect the rim and crash the boards. He made ball handlers think twice before entering his domain as he altered shots with his ability to get off the floor and his lengthy wingspan. Getting back to discussing his offensive prowess, he was very efficient with his middle jumper and his ability to score from behind the arc. He did not spend a lot of time on the low block, as most of his catches were just outside of the paint, and that is where he did most of his damage. He has some work to do as he has to improve his ability to put the rock on the floor because a 6’1 center is not ideal at the high school level.    

Giancarlo Martinez (5’8/PF|C/’28/NYBA ’28) 

Instagram: Gian.hoops

There is so much to like about Giancarlo’s game and if he ever puts it all together. He is loaded with potential as he can score it with the best in his class at his position. He doesn’t play extremely physically, as he shows more finesse around the rim. He has soft hands and a nice touch in the paint and at the rim. Giancarlo is capable of overwhelming opponents with his size and strength on a nightly basis as he provides frontcourt scoring, and on defense, he is a space-eating interior defender. I mentioned earlier that the key to his game is if he can put it all together, and really what I am saying is if Giancarlo can play harder and be more aggressive and assertive, the skies will be the limit as his future will be so much brighter, but all of what I just said is a choice that G is going to have to make.